A significant problem in the computer area involves how best to provide for management of computers, including, for example, providing maintenance and update information. In the past, it has been common to provide service contracts for personal visits by repair personnel to maintain and update computer equipment. Obviously, this is an expensive and time consuming approach. Accordingly, significant efforts have been made toward providing remote management for computers to eliminate the need for such personal service calls.
In Local-Area-Networks (LANs), systems such as the Intel Wired-for-Manageability (WfM) have been developed to perform diagnosis, repair and update operations without the need for personal service calls. However, such systems are generally not readily adaptable to so-called "occasionally connected" computers (e.g., consumer personal computers (PCs), corporate desktops in remote branch offices, unattended servers in branch offices, mobile platforms, etc.). In the past, such occasionally connected computers have been remotely serviced or updated by connection over a public network, such as the Internet. However, such remote management operations require the operating system of the computer to be booted in order to establish a modem connection over the network. In many cases, this is impractical because the nature of the problem which the computer is experiencing prevents booting the operating system. Accordingly, a significant need exists for an arrangement that can permit modem connection for diagnosis, update and/or downloading of other desirable information over a network connection without the requirement for an operating system boot, especially in the area of occasionally connected computers.